Timeless Outtakes
by chocolatequeen
Summary: A series of missing moments in the Timelessness 'verse. Each chapter in this story elaborates on a moment that was mentioned in one of the longer stories. They should mostly be fluffy, or at least not angsty. ETA: Except chapter 4 - it's definitely angsty.
1. We Don't Need Those

_Rose took the credit stick and tapped it against the palm of her hand. The Doctor recognised the sidelong glance she shot him, as well as the mischievous humour flowing over the bond, and he hid a smile._

" _Anything in particular I should stay away from?" she asked, glancing at the stalls then back at him. "Poisonous lippie, jewellery that's really some kind of alien sex toy…"_

" _Alien sex toy?" he choked out. "Rose, where—" She reminded him of the bracelets she'd almost purchased on Barcelona, and he held back his denial._

 _~ To Make Much of Time, chapter 34_

The cool, dark shop was a welcome respite from the hot Barcelonian sun. Rose pushed her sunglasses up onto her head and scanned the shelves.

"How can I help you?" the shopkeeper asked.

She picked up a smooth stone and turned it over in her hands before setting it back down. "I'm just looking, really."

"Are you travelling alone?"

Rose smiled. The Doctor was arranging a hike to a famous waterfall with a local tour guide, and she'd taken advantage of the time to herself to shop for a present for him.

"No, I'm here with my… partner," she said, only hesitating slightly before using the word. "I'm actually looking for something special to give him, as a souvenir of our stay."

"Ah, then perhaps you would be interested in these." He opened a case and retrieved two gold bracelets.

Rose picked one up, surprised by the weight of it. "What are they?"

"Barcelonian bonding bracelets. Couples come from all over the system to buy a pair."

A subtle shift in her bond with the Doctor told her he'd entered the shop. A moment later his, hand rested in the small of her back. Rose sensed recognition and amusement from him, and she looked up at him, a question in her eyes.

"I don't think we need those," he told the man firmly.

The shopkeeper began to protest, but Rose ignored him so she could pay attention to what the Doctor was silently telling her. _Barcelonian bonding bracelets are used to facilitate a telepathic connection during sex._ He waggled his eyebrows. _Definitely not something we need._

"You don't realise what you're turning down," the shopkeeper was saying. "The use of telepathy only heightens sensations during physical intimacy."

"That's all right," Rose said kindly, trying not to laugh right in front of him. "The Doctor's right; we don't need help with telepathy."

The shopkeeper blinked, then looked from Rose to the Doctor, and back again. "Yes, of course. I can see that now. I do apologise, miss."

Rose and the Doctor managed to contain their amusement until they were out of the shop, but as soon as they were outside, they broke into gales of laughter.

"Of all the things in the shop he could have offered…" the Doctor said.

"It seemed like he could tell we're telepathic, there at the end."

The Doctor nodded. "All Barcelonians are low-level telepaths. He's probably not used to telepathic off-worlders, or he would have realised you were a telepath the moment you walked through the door."

Rose let the Doctor get a few steps ahead of her, taking a moment to admire him. He was still in his pinstriped trousers, but he'd left the jacket in their room and his shirt sleeves were rolled up. It was the most casual she'd ever seen him when they weren't at home, and she couldn't get enough of it.

It took about five steps for the Doctor to realise she wasn't beside him anymore. Rose felt him probe the bond gently as he looked back at her, and a thought occurred to her.

She walked toward him and put her hand on his chest. _He was right about one thing though._ The Doctor raised an eyebrow, and Rose smiled at him and tugged gently at the tie he persisted in wearing. _I've certainly found the use of telepathy while making love to heighten sensations._

The Doctor smirked down at her. _Have you now?_ he asked as he put a hand on her waist and drew her close.

"Oh, definitely," Rose breathed out loud, just before his lips met hers.


	2. Reasons for Skinny Dipping

Rose pulled him into her mind then, and he gaped a little when he realised she was projecting them into a memory from Barcelona—specifically, a waterfall they had hiked to.

The Doctor looked and realised she'd gotten every detail exactly right—the lush green palm fronds, the sound of the water rushing over the cliff face and splashing into the pool below, even the fragrant scent of the pink and purple tropical flowers.

[…]

He dropped the shirt onto the rock beside him, then stood up to undo the zip on his trousers. _Do you remember what I wanted to do the last time we were here?_

She blushed and rolled her eyes. _They'd have arrested us for desecrating the goddess' sacred pool._

The Doctor dropped his trousers and pants and jumped into the water. _Yes, well, if this is all in our minds, then there's no one to tell us we can't go swimming under the waterfall._

 _~ To Make Much of Time, chapter 39_

"Remind me again why we had to get up so early?" Rose asked the Doctor as they walked through the still-quiet streets of the Barcelonian resort town.

The Doctor draped an arm over her shoulders, encouraging Rose to wrap hers around his waist. "All hikes to the waterfalls leave early so the groups can return before the hottest part of the day."

Rose yawned. "Right. That's it."

"Poor Rose. Your tea wasn't enough to wake you up this morning?"

She cast him a sidelong glance. _Not when someone kept me up until four a.m._

The Doctor projected a flurry of images from the night before over their bond. _I don't remember you complaining at the time._

Rose's face warmed at the memory, and both sleep and hiking were suddenly the farthest things from her mind. She had her mouth open to suggest they return to the hotel when they turned a corner and nearly ran into a group of people congregated around a small kiosk.

"Oh look, we're here!" the Doctor chirped, dragging her forward to meet the rest of the tour group.

oOoOoOoOo

 _Really, I should have expected this,_ Rose mused an hour later, as she watched the Doctor deliver a steady stream of facts about everything from the plant life to the history of Barcelona to the captivated tour group.

It had started only five minutes into the hike, when the guide had misidentified a plant growing by the trail. The Doctor had quickly corrected him, and after frowning at him for a moment, the guide had continued his thoroughly uninspiring schtick.

After the Doctor corrected him the third time, the other members of the party started addressing their questions to him, and soon, the Doctor and Rose were walking in front of the group, the doctor enthralling them all with his babble.

A large bird soared over the trail, its red feathers standing out in brilliant contrast to the dark green jungle canopy. "Oooh, a Barcelonian scarlet papago!" the Doctor said. "Now, the brightly coloured plumage of most jungle birds would certainly be an evolutionary disaster in any other environment, but it blends in so well with the tropical flora that both male and female share the vibrant colouring—unlike most bird species in the galaxy."

Rose caught a sigh of annoyance, and felt a twinge of guilt when she looked at the disgruntled tour guide. Normally, she'd be chastising the Doctor for his rudeness in showing off like this, but apart from the Barcelonian's incompetence at his job, she loved watching the Doctor in his element. _Have I ever told him that he's dead sexy when he's in full lecture mode?_

The Doctor paused in his patter to shoot her a lazy smile, and Rose knew he'd caught that thought.

The sound of fast moving water caught her ear. "Are we almost there, Doctor?" she asked. "I think I hear the waterfall."

He waited until they all navigated the sharp bend in the trail to answer. "Right you are, Rose! We're only about five—" He looked at the rest of the group, none of them as accustomed to exercise as they were. "A ten minute walk from the base of the falls. You should be able to catch a few glimpses of it between breaks in the foliage."

"Oh, I see it!" said a woman covered in lavender fur moment later. Everyone crowded around her, craning their necks to see the famed waterfall.

"Doctor," the woman's mate said, his dark purple fur rippling in the wind, "what kind of flowers are these? We haven't seen them before."

"These are legatas," the Doctor said, pointing to the pink and purple blooms. "They only grow on this cliff, within hearing distance of the waterfall. Legend says this is the favoured bathing site of the goddess Dina, and she uses the flowers to scent her bath water."

"Is the legend true?" asked an older man as they continued down the path.

Rose stiffened, ready to interrupt if the Doctor seemed like he was going to insult the local religion.

But he just shrugged. "It might be. Or it might be that the stream carries high amounts of nitrates from crossing the plains, and that combines with the copper in the soil along the cliff to create a unique ecological zone. But then, I'm more of a man of science."

The guide grunted, and Rose guess he was only slightly appeased by what she thought was actually a diplomatic answer.

The decline gradually shallowed out, and Rose knew they were almost to the base of the falls. "Now," the Doctor said, "it's tradition to sit on the edge of the pool and dip your feet into the water. It's the way you let the goddess know you have come to worship her, and allow her to bless you."

The trees opened up, and Rose gasped at the brilliant turquoise water. Twenty feet away, the waterfall splashed into the pool, sending a constant mist into the air.

"The water itself is clear, of course," the Doctor said while everyone took their shoes and socks off. "The colour is either painted by Edzo, the goddess' lover, or caused by that copper in the rocks that I mentioned earlier."

Rose sat on the smooth rocks and dangled her feet into the pool, sighing when the cool water soothed the aches from the hike.

The Doctor sat beside her and hummed happily. "Oh, that is a treat. It's too bad no one brought bathing suits—this is the perfect temperature for swimming."

The guide cocked an eyebrow at him. "I wouldn't recommend swimming here."

The Doctor pulled the sonic screwdriver out of his pocket and scanned the water. "Why not, aside from the aforementioned lack of proper attire? The water is perfectly safe."

"Well, I guess you don't know everything after all," the guide said. "Swimming in the goddess' pool is sacrilegious and punishable by up to a year in prison." He rocked back on his heels. "Which you would have known if you'd read the brochure we gave you when you registered for the tour yesterday."

Rose glanced sideways at the Doctor. His lower lip was jutting out slightly in a pout and his jaw was set.

 _No._

He looked over at her, his face the picture of innocence. _No what?_

 _No, we are not going to find a way to sneak back here and go swimming without anyone finding out._

 _Oh, but think of it, Rose._ The Doctor rested his hand on her knee, and a seductive note entered his telepathic voice. _Just the two of us, slipping down the trail as the sun sets, peeling off our clothes and slipping into the water while the moon climbs into the night sky._

His finger traced lazy circles on the inside of her knee, but Rose suppressed a shiver and laced her fingers through his. _The authorities finding out and hauling us away to prison_ , she added. _It would be quite a show for them, catching us skinny dipping in their sacred pool,_ she said, suspecting the idea of anyone else seeing her naked wouldn't set well with the Doctor.

 _Oh, fine._ He kicked his feet in the water, sending a spray upward. _But if we ever find a way to swim under this waterfall without getting caught…_


	3. Calling Home

It's been a year since Rose burned up a sun to say good-bye to her mother. When the TARDIS detects Weeping Angels in London before the Battle of Canary Wharf, she has one more chance to talk to her.

" _Are you sure about this, Doctor?" Rose stared up at the abandoned house. The weathered wrought iron fence, broken windows, and dilapidated conservatory overrun by ivy made the place look like a horror movie set—not someplace she wanted to spend her Sunday afternoon, unless she had to._

 _The Doctor checked the sonic screwdriver again. "Yep! This is where the odd temporal readings I've been getting are coming from." He looked at Rose. "You know I wouldn't have brought us here if it wasn't important."_

 _She nodded; they were in London 2007, only a few weeks before ghosts started appearing all over planet Earth. The short phone call she'd been able to sneak in with her mum had only made Rose miss her more. Being in the same city and yet unable to go visit was almost physically painful._

 _~ Time is Still A-Flying, chapter 32_

A few days after they discovered the _Brilliant,_ the Doctor was teaching Rose more about TARDIS maintenance when the scanner beeped. The Doctor popped out from underneath the console and peered at the monitor, frowning when he read the report on odd temporal activity.

"What is it?" Rose looked over his shoulder, and without being told, the TARDIS changed the language from Gallifreyan to English so she could understand the read-out. "I'm not an expert," she said slowly, "but that looks a lot like the residual energy left by temporal displacement."

The Doctor glanced down at her. Occasionally, her increased ability to follow science-y things caught him by surprise. "Basically," he agreed. "There are a lot of fluctuations in timelines focused on one particular place in London."

"Of course in London." Rose rolled her eyes, then looked up at him, a wide grin on her face. "I assume we'll check it out, once Martha gets up?"

"You assume correctly." The Doctor caught a detail he hadn't noticed before, and his smile disappeared.

"What?"

He pointed at the screen. "According to the TARDIS, the best time for us to land is early spring, 2007." He glanced at her worriedly. "We'll have to be careful we don't run into your mum."

Rose flinched, and he kicked himself for being so blunt. But after a moment, he sensed her pull her wayward emotions together and smile at him. "You just don't want to be smacked when she finds out we got married without her there," she teased.

The Doctor put his hand protectively against his cheek. "Can you blame me?" he asked.

She bit her lip. "Could I…"

Waves of longing buffeted him over the bond, and the Doctor was almost positive he knew what she was going to ask.

"Could I call her? Just to talk for a few minutes?"

"Rose…" The warning in his voice was pointless. They both knew he was going to agree. Truthfully, as dangerous as it was, he wanted to give her this.

The TARDIS hummed her agreement and an offer to help, and both the Doctor and Rose nodded. He opened a drawer beneath the console and retrieved the phone she hardly used anymore and handed it to her.

"The TARDIS will make sure the call connects after we helped your mum with Elton, but before we came to visit for the last time," the Doctor said. "So you can tell her about our date, or about going to the Olympics, or even about seeing Elton again—but nothing else. Oh, and make sure you don't mention the bond, since she didn't know we were engaged until you told her at Torchwood."

"Got it," Rose said. Her old superphone felt strange in her hand, and she hefted it, getting used to the feel again. Her finger hovered over the speed dial button, then she looked up at the Doctor. "How long do I have?"

The Doctor brushed a strand of hair back over her ear and smiled tenderly. "Take as long as you want, love. Martha and I will find something to keep ourselves busy while you're talking to Jackie."

Rose stretched up and kissed him on the cheek before skipping down to the study to place her call. She took a moment to recall the last few phone conversations she'd shared with her mother, then she dialled the familiar number.

"Rose! I didn't expect you to call, sweetheart, figured you'd be too busy with your dinner with himself to spare a thought for you mum."

Her mum's opening monologue gave Rose enough time to choke back the tears that sprang to her eyes when she heard her voice for the first time in a year. "It's been a few weeks for us," she said. "Does that mean we just took care of Elton and the Absorbaloff?"

"Yeah, just last week." Jackie huffed. "I wish you'd keep time synced on our phone calls, Rose. It's always weird to hear that weeks have passed for you."

"Oh, but this way I can tell you about everything we've been up to. Don't you want to hear?" Rose cajoled.

"I want to hear about this dinner the Doctor took you out for. Did he do everything proper? Let you dress up, bring you flowers?"

Rose turned and stretched out on the couch with her head resting on the arm rest. Sharing the details of her date with her mum was such a familiar thing; if she closed her eyes, she could almost believe she was back in the flat, giggling over a glass of wine.

But none of the dates with Mickey had been anything like that first date with the Doctor. Rose glanced at the wall, where she had insisted on hanging the framed copy of the dating article he'd read.

"We went to our favourite restaurant on Glaurus—this intimate little place that does the best crab cakes you've ever had. The Doctor had actually called ahead for a reservation, if you can believe it."

Her mum snorted. "No, I can't," she said. "I don't think that man knows how to do anything the normal way. 'There's a nice teashop on the _Titanic_ ,' what kind of answer is that? Like it's normal to just flit about the way you do."

"But it is normal, Mum," Rose countered, not bothering to correct _Titanic_ to Titan. "It's our normal. We've got favourite restaurants and a list of places never to go again, just like any other couple. They're just on other planets, some of them." She grinned, knowing her next comment would pull her mum back on topic. "I'm pretty sure the chippy just down the street from you is the Doctor's favourite."

"Hmmm. Well, that's all right then. So, he took you out to dinner. What next?"

Rose sighed. "After dinner, we went for a walk along the cliffs overlooking the ocean. We stood there and watched the stars come out until it got cold, and then we went home." She debated the next part, then decided it was a sweet enough story to be worth giving her mum material to tease the Doctor over. "The Doctor was so sweet, Mum. He tried so hard to make our date perfect. He even found this article about human dating rituals, only it had all this old-fashioned stuff like offering her your arm while you walk, and not kissing on the first date."

The other end of the line was silent for so long that Rose thought maybe their call had been cut off. "Mum?"

Jackie sniffed. "I'm still here, sweetheart," she said. "It's just… I never realised how much he really loves you. I'm not saying that because he didn't kiss you, because that's a bit rubbish and I hope you set him straight. But even if he got a few things wrong, I've never seen anyone try that hard to create the perfect date."

The Doctor's love shone brightly over their bond, and Rose basked in the feeling. "I know he loves me, Mum," she said, her voice tight. "And I love him just as much."

"You know, I didn't like him at first," Jackie said, and Rose rolled her eyes at the understatement. "But he's proven so many times that nothing matters more to him than your safety and happiness, and in the end, that's what I want—for you to be safe and happy."

Mother and daughter took a moment to collect themselves, then Rose cleared her throat and said, "So, tell me what's happening around the Estate. Has Bev's daughter gotten married yet?"

"Oh, I haven't told you!"

Rose relaxed back into the couch and listened to her mum ramble about cancelled weddings and wanker fiancés and all the domestic things she never heard about anymore. Saying goodbye to her mum had been hard—probably one of the hardest things she'd ever do—and getting one more hour to be Jackie's daughter… she silently blessed whatever was causing the temporal fluctuations that had brought them back to London.


	4. Where Rose Belongs

Jackie's POV during Chapter 1 of But Being Spent.

Jackie hadn't wanted her daughter to fall in love with an alien. Though she'd (very) gradually warmed up to the Doctor, she was still glad to have Rose with her in the parallel universe. But when the loss hit Rose harder than she'd expected, she began to wonder where Rose really belonged.

Jackie couldn't hear what was being said between her daughter and the Doctor, but she'd seen the way Rose had curled in on herself and she knew this wasn't going to be the reunion they-Rose-had hoped for. As for herself, Jackie still wasn't sure what she wanted. When Pete had disappeared and come back with Rose in his arms, she'd thought it was for the best. The Doctor's life wasn't _normal_ , and it wasn't any substitute for being with family.

But Rose hadn't bounced back from the shock like she'd expected, and finally, after two months, she'd told her the full truth of their relationship. That they hadn't just been engaged, they'd had some kind of mental bond thingy. Jackie didn't understand half the words coming out of Rose's mouth, but she caught enough to realise being away from the Doctor was causing Rose actual, physical pain. And though she'd certainly said her piece about weird alien rituals, that knowledge had killed any idea that Rose could ever be truly happy in their new universe.

That was the day she'd gone to Pete, privately, and asked him if there was any way they could get Rose home. It had taken two months of nagging and cajoling, but finally, just two days before, he'd grudgingly agreed to allow Rose to use Torchwood's resources to look into dimensional travel.

"But only if she studies the science, and works with leaders in the field," he'd said sternly. "I'm not having this universe on the edge of destruction again, just to get our daughter home to her lover."

They hadn't had a chance to talk to Rose about it, and when she'd come to them and said the Doctor was calling to her, Jackie had seen the sigh of relief from Pete. Maybe Rose could go home without any risk to them, or to their unborn child.

Then the Doctor disappeared, leaving Rose standing alone on a cold, Norwegian beach. Heart in her throat, Jackie took a step forward. A moment later, Rose collapsed to the sand, and Jackie ran to sit with her, wrapping her arms around her sobbing daughter.

"That's right, sweetheart," she said as she stroked Rose's hair. "Just let it all out."

Rose's tears were soaking through her jacket. Jackie only seen Rose this upset twice before in her life-once when the big-eared Doctor had sent her back in the TARDIS, and once months later when they'd come home and he'd changed his face.

"He's gone again, Mum," Rose sobbed, just like she had then, and Jackie finally accepted that Doctor had been it for Rose long before they'd formed that freaky alien bond thingy.

She pulled back and brushed Rose's hair back from her forehead. "Well then you'll just have to find a way to get back to him, won't you? Lord knows that man is hopeless without you."

Rose chuckled, but she still looked lost. "I'm not sure where to begin."

 _Right, that's enough of that._ Jackie hadn't raised Rose to collapse into melancholy when she lost a man. She didn't care if their engagement was different; Rose was still her daughter, and she would help her find her strength.

"Rose Tyler, your father is the director of Torchwood," she said, putting some fire behind her words. "You've got access to more fancy gadgets than anyone except himself, probably. And you don't know where to start finding a way home?"

She stood up and held out her hand. "We've been sitting too long, if your mind has gone that much. Come on; we'll stay the night someplace and then head home tomorrow, where you'll start learning everything you can about this Void."


	5. Sleep Now

**AN:** This is set between To Make Much of Time and Time is Still A-Flying. The Doctor has always claimed he doesn't mind staying all night with Rose. Why? A double drabble with the prompt word of serenity.

The Doctor stuck a bookmark in his novel and set it down with a sigh. Any interest he'd had in reading had fled when Rose rolled over and snuggled her soft, warm body against him.

He turned out the light and slid down under the covers, rolling onto his side to spoon her. A huff of amusement escaped him when he thought of all the times Rose had told him he didn't need to stay with her through the night. Beside the fact that it was actually good for him to take a few hours of downtime each night, this was one of his favourite parts of the day.

Lying with Rose in their bed, feeling her contentment as her mind brushed against his over their bond, peace stole over him. For a few hours, he wasn't the last of the Time Lords. He was just the Doctor, Rose Tyler's bond mate and lover.

Rose snuffled in her sleep, on the verge of waking up. The Doctor nestled his mind against hers. _Sleep, love_ , he urged, and she relaxed back into him.

Comfort and safety soothed the Doctor, and he let go of his concerns and joined Rose in slumber.


	6. To All the Men I Was Before

**AN:** This is part of the kiss/hug meme I'm working on via Tumblr, but instead of being in the same series as the rest of those stories, it's a Timeless Outtake. Pharohtrinity prompted me with Eskimo kiss, and it worked perfectly from a missing scene from TISAF.

When the TARDIS helps Rose find winter clothes to wear when the Doctor takes them ice skating, she brings out a old scarf the Doctor hasn't seen in years.

 _Martha stared at the multi-coloured scarf that covered most of her friend's face and then looped around her neck several times. "What is that?"_

 _Above the line of the scarf, Rose's cheeks lifted in a smile. She took one of the ends of the scarf and twirled it in the air. "It used to be the Doctor's," she said. "The TARDIS had it out, and it happens to be really warm."_

~ _Time is Still A-Flying, chapter 22_

 **To All the Men I Was Before**

Rose sighed and set her empty teacup down on the tray. The Doctor had brought them breakfast in bed when she'd woken up, and they'd been talking quietly while they waited for the TARDIS to tell them Martha was awake.

"So, ice skating on the mineral lakes of Kur-ha?" she asked as she swung her legs out of bed and pulled her dressing gown on.

"Hmmm? Oh, right!" The Doctor buttoned two buttons on his suit jacket and grinned at her. "You'll love it, Rose. It's a gorgeous planet, covered with soft snow that's perfect for playing in."

"Sounds cold," Rose observed. "And I don't really have much in the way of winter things—at least, not in our closet."

The Doctor lifted the tray off the bed and set it on her vanity. "Then I think we need to take a trip to the wardrobe room, don't you?"

Rose smiled when he waggled his fingers, and she took his hand. The Doctor babbled a mile a minute about Kur-ha and its famous mineral lakes as he led them to the wardrobe room, but Rose focused on the TARDIS and what she wanted.

 _Gimme something that'll make him smile._ She brushed her fingers over the wall as they walked, and the ship hummed warmly in response.

"Ooooh, look at this Rose!" the Doctor exclaimed when they entered the wardrobe room. "Looks like she's laid out a full kit for you already."

Rose grinned when she saw the pile of neatly folded clothes waiting on the chaise lounge. "Thank you, dear," she murmured. She pulled on the jeans, shirt, jumper, and boots quickly, then looked at the outerwear.

So far, she hadn't seen anything she thought would get the kind of smile she wanted from the Doctor. The TARDIS nudged her to pick up the coat and see what was waiting underneath, so Rose obliged her, moving the blue down coat out of the way.

Her brow furrowed when she saw the hand knit scarf lying in a heap beneath the coat. "What is _that?_ " she questioned.

The Doctor groaned. "Oh, she didn't," he grumbled. "What am I talking about, of course she did. Always loves a chance to laugh at me." He glared at the ceiling. "I could have left you in that museum, you know."

The lights flickered, and Rose giggled at the playful bickering between two friends who'd known each other for ages. Then she picked the scarf up and draped it around the Doctor's neck.

Despited his height, several feet trailed on the floor on both ends. "How long is it?" Rose asked, picking up one end and wrapping it around her neck.

"Well over twenty feet. You should pick something else, Rose. This is a health hazard. The number of times I tripped over it, or nearly…"

Rose's eyes widened, and she spun herself out of the scarf so she could look up at the Doctor. "You mean you used to wear this?"

The Doctor ran his hand over his face. "There'll be no talking you out of it now, will there?"

"Nope!" Rose popped the p and grinned up at him. "Tell me about the you that wore this," she invited the Doctor as she pulled the coat on.

"I can do better than that," he told her, and a moment later, Rose watched his memory of a tall man with wild curls racing through a corridor, the scarf she held in her hands trailing behind him.

"Oh!" she said when she recognised another face in the memory. "He was the you Sarah Jane knew."

"One of them," the Doctor corrected. "Sarah was one of the few who stayed with me through a regeneration."

"He's quite dashing, in a bohemian adventurer sort of way," Rose observed.

"Oi! How can you call him dashing, with that floppy hat covering up the hair that goes every direction?"

Rose smirked up at her Doctor. "Not sure you can really talk about hair going every direction," she pointed out. He pouted and ran his hand through his hair, immediately proving her point.

She laughed at his hedgehog hair and used her fingers to comb it back into place. "Maybe I like Doctors who have hair that looks touchable," she teased.

That finally got a smile out of him. "I've had some great hair in the past," he bragged, "but this is the best to date."

Rose shook her head fondly and held out the scarf. "If you're done being jealous of yourself, can you help me put this on? I'm not sure how to wrap it so I don't trip over the ends."

He hummed happily in agreement. Rose watched in the floor length mirror as he draped one end over her shoulder so the tassels brushed against her waist, then wrapped it around her neck a total of five times before the other end dangled down almost to her knee.

The Doctor took a step back when he had Rose wrapped up in his old scarf. He'd been resigned when the TARDIS had pulled it out of storage, convinced she was trying to embarrass him. He hadn't expected the warmth that surged through him when he looked at his bond mate, dressed in something that used to be such a huge part of who he was.

Her cheeks moved under the scarf, and he realised she was smiling. "Well, what do you think?"

He stepped closer to her and tugged on one end of the scarf. "I think," he drawled as he put his hand on her waist, "that I've just discovered why they call it an Eskimo kiss."

Rose's eyes darted to his lips, then met his. "Why's that?"

"Because when you're bundled up like this, your nose is all I can reach." The Doctor bent down and brushed his nose against Rose's, enjoying her indrawn breath and the soft scent of her body wash.

 _Mmm, I like that,_ she told him as her eyelashes fluttered against his. She moved her head, returning the sweet caress. _You've never kissed me like this before._

 _There are a thousand ways I want to kiss you, love. We've barely scratched the surface._


	7. Mocha Mixup

_Rose pressed her lips together and her eyes danced with laughter. "Think about it this way. If I hadn't gone to the coffee shop with the older you first, the barista wouldn't have though I was engaged in some kind of sordid affair."_

 _Forever and Never Apart, ch 32_

It was immediately clear to Rose that the Doctor had spent his hour alone planning the perfect day. First, they had lunch at a fancy fondue restaurant where they cooked their food in hot oil right at the table. After that, they went on a sleigh ride through an ice sculpture exhibition at the park.

As beautiful as the sleigh ride was, it was also freezing. Rose stomped her feet and clapped her hands together when they got out. "Can we go someplace warm now, Doctor?"

"Oh yes!" he promised, his words forming a cloud of mist in the frigid air. "But first…" He clasped her hands between his, and a moment later, she felt warmth seep back into her fingers.

"How do you do that, when your body temperature is lower than mine?" she asked.

The Doctor smiled, then dropped her hands and wrapped an arm around her shoulder, holding her close as they left the park. "Since I can regulate my temperature in the cold and you can't, right now I'm actually warmer than you are—not my core temperature, but I am warmer to the touch."

Rose snuggled into his side and felt her tense muscles relax in his warmth. "Perfect excuse for a cuddle."

The Doctor laughed and pressed a kiss to her temple. "I didn't know we needed an excuse."

They bantered back and forth until Rose spotted a sign she recognised. "Oh, we've got to go in here!" She reached for the Doctor's hand and tugging him towards the cafe door. "They have the most incredible orange mochas."

The Doctor's hand went limp in hers and he stopped in the middle of the pavement. "You've already had one?"

"Well yeah… You took me this morning."

" _I_ didn't take you."

Rose turned around and put her hands on her waist. "Yes, you did," she said firmly, letting him feel her waning patience with his jealousy of himself.

His bottom lip stuck out. "I wanted to see the look on your face the first time you tasted it."

She sighed and stepped towards him, putting her hand on his chest. "And you will, one day." She raised an eyebrow. "In fact, since you told yourself not to hide your memories, you had to take me then because you remembered pouting about not being the one to take me. You set up your own paradox, Doctor."

He huffed, but she saw a hint of a smile turn up the corners of his mouth. "All right. Let's warm up with a famous Julata orange mocha." He reached around her and pushed the door open.

The warmth of the cafe felt even better after having spent two hours outside. Rose leaned up and kissed the Doctor on the cheek.

"I'll find us a place to sit while you order," she told him. He hummed happily and squeezed her hand, then stepped up to the counter.

Rose bypassed the traditional cafe tables in favour of a love seat positioned in front of roaring fire. She'd just taken off her winter gear when the Doctor arrived, carrying two mochas and a folded piece of paper.

"What's that?" Rose asked as she took the drinks and set them down on the table.

"I don't know. The barista handed it to me with my change."

They sat down on the love seat and the Doctor unfolded the note. Rose watched the confusion cross his face a moment before amusement swept over the bond, and the Doctor tipped his head back and laughed.

"What? What is it?" She leaned over to read the note, then started laughing along with him.

 _That woman you called your wife was in here earlier with another bloke she said was her husband. Just thought you should know._


End file.
